No guarantee Austria updates will be raceable - McLaren

McLaren says there is no guarantee its new upgrade package for the Austrian Grand Prix will be immediately "raceable".

Despite scoring two podium finishes at the opening race in Australia, it soon became clear that this year's McLaren is lacking downforce compared to its rivals. The team has targeted the Austrian and British Grands Prix for a fightback, but ahead of this weekend's trip to the Red Bull Ring, team boss Eric Boullier has tempered expectations.

"Since the beginning of the season, we've stated that we need to bring more downforce to the car," he said. "Of course, that's a constantly moving target - for this weekend, however, we'll be evaluating a number of short- and long-term performance steps.

"It's still too early to feel confident about calling them raceable options - it's more about evaluating their applicability at the circuit than simply hoping they'll improve lap-time. Nonetheless, we hope the steps will pave the way for an improvement."

Nevertheless, Boullier is expecting a successful weekend in Austria.

"I'm looking forward to a challenging but successful weekend in Austria. It's good news to see a new, albeit historic, European venue added to the calendar, and everybody will be hoping that this weekend's event is a successful one."